Zelensky warns about North Korea’s troops in the Ukraine war

 

Winter is approaching. This will make the situation in Ukraine even more difficult than it already is. On October 10, 2022, the Russian army attacked the country’s energy infrastructure for the first time in a large wave. Since then she has repeated the attacks again and again. According to EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, 70 percent of Ukraine’s electricity infrastructure has now been destroyed.

“We need money as quickly as possible,” said Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky on Thursday at the EU summit in Brussels. On the one hand, to protect citizens from the harshness of the winter, and on the other hand, to produce weapons that the West does not supply. For a long time, Ukraine had to cope with too little military support from the West, said Zelensky.

The many fears of the West

This will not change any time soon, as was once again clear at the EU summit. On Wednesday, Zelensky presented his “victory plan” to the Ukrainian parliament. In it, among other things, he demands that Western long-range weapons be allowed to fire on targets inside Russia.

But Western countries are hesitant. They fear being drawn into the Ukraine war. Zelensky tried to allay these concerns in front of the media in Brussels. “We already use long-range weapons – our own and those from France and Great Britain,” he said. With them, Ukraine sank, among other things, 23 Russian ships that were not on Ukrainian territory.

Ukraine has not yet received any long-range weapons from Germany. However, Selenski expressly called on Chancellor Olaf Schulz to do so. That would be a sign of goodwill.

Germany’s position on the question of Ukrainian NATO membership is also unclear. An invitation to join the alliance is the most important point of Zelensky’s victory plan. Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz said neither yes nor no to this, said the Ukrainian President. “But we will work on it.”

He also talked to American presidential candidate Donald Trump about NATO membership: Ukraine needs these or nuclear weapons. Trump listened to him and agreed with his arguments, said Zelensky.

For Zelensky, the question of NATO membership and the invitation to join is not just a question of arming and protection from allies. It would also be a sign of hope for the population, said Zelensky.

Zelensky refers to North Korea intervening

Militarily, Ukraine’s situation is serious. To clearly demonstrate this to his partners, Zelensky referred to North Korea, Russia’s ally. The country’s officers are already taking part in the war, the president said. And he claimed that 10,000 North Korean soldiers were being prepared for deployment in the Ukraine war. This is a finding of his secret service. NATO has expressly not confirmed the statement. According to Zelensky, such an intervention would be the first step towards a world war.

Ukraine’s financial situation is just as dramatic as its military situation. A cleverly arranged loan for the country is actually available. In the summer, the G-7 countries decided to grant Ukraine a loan of $50 billion. The country is supposed to repay this with interest that accrues on frozen balances of the Russian central bank in the EU.

The confederation of states wants to contribute 35 billion euros to this loan and would thus once again be the war-torn country’s most important financier. But Hungary wants to block the deal until the American elections on November 5th.

The loan does not require unanimity among the member states, just a qualified majority. But Hungary has another lever to delay the transaction: the EU has blocked the Russian assets as part of the sanctions imposed on the country, and these must be extended unanimously by the member states every six months.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban can delay the loan and play political games by not agreeing to an extension. Did Zelensky speak to his opponent in Brussels? “We greeted each other, that’s something,” said the President.

Ukraine’s energy infrastructure is becoming increasingly weak

As difficult as it is to get aid to Ukraine, there was no lack of verbal support at this summit. “Ukraine can rely on us,” said Scholz before the meeting. The $50 billion loan is an important sign of this solidarity.

Ukraine and the EU are in a race against time to maintain Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Russia attacks again and again while the Ukrainian electricians try to repair the damage as quickly as possible.

Ukraine receives replacement materials, such as generators, from the West. But their delivery is progressing slowly due to the manufacturers’ limited capacities. The country can restore the disrupted supply to some extent surprisingly quickly. But according to experts, the infrastructure becomes weaker with every attack – and this will happen again next winter.